Biology Team Discovers that Sugar Propels Plants to Adulthood

Based on experiments with the plant Arabidopsis thaliana, a team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania Department of Biology has provided fresh insights into the role of sugar in “vegetative phase change,” the transition from the juvenile form of a plant to the adult plant.

“It has been known for a long time that mineral nutrients and sugars can affect plant growth, but it has been unclear until now if they trigger developmental transitions,” said Scott Poethig, a biology professor at Penn and senior author on the paper, which was published online in the open-access journal eLife.

The research was led by Penn graduate student Li Yang, and other co-authors included postdoctoral researchers Mingli Xu and Yeonjong Koo and graduate student Jia He.

Read the full story here.

Arts & Sciences News

1 / 2
Hanming Fang Named Inaugural Norman C. Grosman Professor of Economics

An applied microeconomist who integrates rigorous modeling with data analysis, Fang’s research within the field of public economics focuses on health insurance and healthcare markets.

View Article >
Xi Song Named Inaugural Schiffman Family Presidential Associate Professor of Sociology

Song’s research interests include social mobility, occupations, Asian Americans, population studies, and quantitative methodology.

View Article >
Julie Nelson Davis Named Paul F. Miller, Jr. and E. Warren Shafer Miller Professor of History of Art

Davis specializes in the arts and material cultures of 18th- and 19th-century Japan, with a focus on prints, paintings, and illustrated books.

View Article >
Justin Khoury Named Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Term Professor of Physics and Astronomy

Khoury’s research interests lie at the intersection of particle physics and cosmology.

View Article >
University of Pennsylvania, Neubauer Family Foundation, and Philadelphia Police Department Partner to Support Police Leadership Education

The first-of-its-kind graduate degree in the U.S. for police leaders launches this fall at the School of Arts & Sciences.

View Article >
Professor of Biology Philip Rea Wins Neal Award for Scientific Journalism

Rea won for the award for Best Technical/Scientific Content for his article “Gliflozins for Diabetes: From Bark to Bench to Bedside,” published in American Scientist.

View Article >